Capital Datang

"Oh? My grandson, please tell me!" Although he hated this sinister man, Li Yin had no choice but to accept the other party's question.Li Shimin and the civil and military officials also looked at the two of them.

"This cement is really wonderful, but I don't know how much it costs?" Changsun Wuji smiled slightly, and immediately asked the key point.Li Shimin and others who were still excited just now also calmed down and looked at Li Min nervously. This cement is good, but good things are usually very expensive. If the cost of cement is too high, the loss outweighs the gain. .

Li Yin smiled slightly. As a later generation, how could he not know the importance of the cost performance of goods. Although he did not understand the materials and labor costs of cement, Bai Qing, the person in charge, knew it all, so Li Yin waved to Bai Qing, Then he said: "Master Changsun asked a good question. Although I provided the cement firing method, the specific operation was done by Bai Shucheng, so I let him introduce it to you." Kong Yingda and others heard that the cement was actually Li Yin invented it, and he was hesitant in his heart. No wonder Li Yin was in charge of this matter.

Bai Qing's legs were trembling with excitement, he walked tremblingly into the arena, bowed to Li Shimin and all the officials, and said, "Bai Qing, who will be the supervisor of the office, pays homage to my emperor, long live, and my lords."

"Quickly flatten your body, what is the cost of this cement?" Li Shimin asked eagerly.Capital Datang 37

"Your Majesty, the materials used in this cement are very common, and the price is very cheap, but it takes a lot of charcoal to calcine, and all the money is spent on fuel." When he said this, Bai Qing pointed at the standing stone. The cement board said, "For this cement board, the cement and sand and gravel used will cost about fifteen yuan."

"Fifteen cents?" Li Shimin frowned. This price is not low. You must know that the current price of grain is only five cents a bucket. 500 million guan!However, Datang’s annual tax revenue is only so much, and it will be gone after building a few cement roads.

"Father, Bai Shucheng is only talking about the current cost. If the cement is fired on a large scale in the future, the cost can be further reduced. Erchen estimates that it will definitely not exceed ten yuan, and with the improvement of the technology in the future, there is still room for the price to drop. " Li Yin stepped forward to reassure, and his words were immediately agreed by Bai Qing.

"If the price can be lowered to less than ten yuan, even if our Tang Dynasty is desperately short, we will have to build roads. This is a sacred act to protect our Tang Dynasty forever!" Couldn't help it anymore, stood up and said excitedly.

Hearing what Fang Xuanling said, many far-sighted officials also agreed, and asked Li Shimin to order that the Ministry of Industry be responsible for expanding the production of cement.Some cautious ministers did not object, but suggested that they could try to build a few roads first to see the effect, and if feasible, it would not be too late to build them extensively.

Li Shimin is also in a dilemma. The treasury is not very rich, and he has been looking for an opportunity to conquer Goguryeo. The Tubo side is not peaceful, and a war will break out at any time. to money.Why can't he see the importance of the road?But if Datang spends several years at a deficit to build roads, he will be unable to do anything at that time, and Datang will also take a defensive position. This is indeed a very painful thing for a very ambitious emperor. thing.

After thinking for a long time, Li Shimin didn't make up his mind, and finally said: "The production of cement must be expanded, and the roads must also be repaired, but the cost is still too high. Let me think about it for a few days before talking about it!"

After Li Shimin finished speaking, he immediately left the court, and this time he didn't ask anyone to stay, and went straight back to the palace in the imperial chariot.The civil and military officials below also dispersed, but some curious people were reluctant to leave. They gathered around the cement workshop to see the cement production process, but for reasons of confidentiality, they were all invited out by Li Yin.

Ordinary officials are easy to deal with. Li Yin went out as soon as Li Yin stepped forward and said that they went out. Some even didn't need Li Yin to invite them in person. Hearing that the cement workshop should be kept secret, he immediately went out consciously.But not everyone has this kind of wink, and what is surprising is that this person is not a rascal like Cheng Yaojin, but a third-rank civil servant in purple.

Li Yin had noticed this person from the beginning, and he also knew him, but he was embarrassed to go up and chase him away because of his affection.I thought that based on this person's identity, seeing that he was chasing people here, he would leave consciously, but what I didn't expect was that this person was still standing there with a smile until the other officials had left the cement workshop.

Li Yin had no choice but to bite the bullet and walked forward, bowed to the ground and said: "My nephew sees Uncle Fang!" Don't look at Li Yingui as a prince, but Fang Xuanling is an old man who fought the world with Li Shimin, In private, Li Shimin always discusses friendship with their peers, so as long as it is not a formal occasion, Li Yin always addresses veterans like Fang Xuanling as elders.

"Hehe, did Liu Lang come to drive this old man out?" Fang Xuanling asked with a smile.

But Li Yin cursed in his heart, since you know it all, why are you still so ignorant?But these can only be thought about in his heart, he dare not say it in person.

"Uncle Fang is serious. Of course this is a secret for others, but of course it doesn't need to be used for you, old man." Li Yin smiled inappropriately.

"Okay, His Highness King Liang, don't play your little tricks in front of me." How could Li Yin's careful thinking be hidden from the eyes of an old fox in the officialdom?The reason why he stayed here was, of course, that he needed to find him for something, and Li Yin vaguely guessed this.

Fang Xuanling considered it for a while, and then said again. "How does His Royal Highness King Liang think about the road construction?"

Li Yin was taken aback. He didn't expect that Fang Xuanling stayed here to ask about road construction. This is not the same as cement. No matter how you say it, cement is just a new thing that benefits the country and the people. He only contributes to it. No, but road construction is different. This is a political matter related to the foundation of the Tang Dynasty. Without Li Shimin's permission, he, the prince, cannot discuss government affairs indiscriminately.Fang Xuanling has been rolling in the court for so many years, so he doesn't even know this, so what does he mean by asking himself?

Li Yin couldn't figure out what Fang Xuanling was up to at the moment, but fortunately he reacted quickly, he was stunned for a moment and hurriedly laughed: "Uncle Fang, you are asking the wrong person, I am an idle person, how can I know about court affairs? "

Fang Xuanling's piercing eyes had been observing Li Yin's every move, seeing Li Yin's quick response, he secretly admired him.As the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, the art of observing people is the foundation of being an official. Fang Xuanling has noticed Li Yin since Li Yin memorized the Three Character Classic in elementary school last time. After this period of direct or indirect contact, Fang Xuanling It can be concluded that among Taizong's scholars, in terms of talent and intelligence, almost no one can match Li Min.Capital Datang 37

It's a pity that Li Yin and Li Ke, the two most outstanding princes, have the royal blood of two dynasties in their bodies, which means that they are destined to miss the throne of the Tang Dynasty!Thinking of this, Fang Xuanling sighed inwardly. Although Li Shimin was still young and the crown prince was selected early, many ministers were dissatisfied with the crown prince's performance in the past few years. Li Shimin also had the idea of ​​Yi Chu in his heart. Fang Xuan As one of the most important advisers under Li Shimin, Ling was also troubled by this issue.

Thinking of these troublesome things, Fang Xuanling felt a little depressed, so he didn't want to hang out with Li Yin anymore, so he cut to the chase and said, "Liu Lang, I have something important to discuss with you this time, so don't worry too much about it. You can say whatever you want, if you call me uncle, then today this old man will act like an old man, and we will chat with the younger generation as elders, what do you think?"

Now that we have talked about this, what else can Li Yin say, and he has no grudges against Fang Xuanling, and as the No. So he stopped laughing and said seriously: "Since uncle said so, then I will share my humble opinion."

Li Yin paused when he said this, and Fang Xuanling listened carefully, so he continued: "Of course, building roads is a century-old project, and the importance of roads is not much to say. My uncle has many years of experience as an official. , I must have seen it more clearly than anyone else, so Xiao Dao thinks that this road must be repaired, but this road cannot be repaired in a day or two, so don't rush for a while, you can build it in Jiannan or other important places. First, try to build a few main roads, and when the time is right, it won’t be too late to build them on a large scale.”

Li Yin's words were very tactful. Just now Fang Xuanling was very enthusiastic about road construction, and his attitude was very radical. He even said that he would spend several years at a loss to build the road.Of course, Li Yin was a little strange. Normally, Fang Xuanling's prudence should not be so radical. What's even more strange is that his statement was supported by many people.

"Hehe, it seems that my nephew thinks that the old man is too radical?" Of course Fang Xuanling could hear the implication of Li Yin's words, but she was not angry at all and said with a smile instead.

"My nephew dare not!" Li Yin hurriedly bowed to salute, although he said he did not dare, but the meaning was just the opposite.

"Ah! In fact, I don't know that this matter can't be rushed, but for the sake of my country, I have to be anxious!" Fang Xuanling suddenly sighed, and said something that shocked Li Yin.

"What do you mean by Uncle?" After Li Min was shocked, he was confused. It is only the tenth year of Zhenguan, and it is the time when the country is strong and prosperous, and it is even called "the rule of Zhenguan" by later generations. It is one of the famous prosperous times in history. I have never heard of anything in history that can threaten the country and society of Datang?

"Does Liu Lang know His Majesty's ambitions?" Fang Xuanling did not answer Li Yin's question, but asked another question that Li Yin couldn't figure out.

"This..." Li Yin hesitated for a moment. He suddenly realized that although he was Li Shimin's son, his understanding of Li Shimin was really inferior to that of Fang Xuanling. After all, he was the number one minister under the emperor's father. The prince himself has not seen Li Shimin for ten and a half months, and Fang Xuanling discusses matters with him almost every day.

"Your Majesty is a hero of the generation, and he is not inferior to Qin Huang Han Wu!" Fang Xuanling said, his tone became high-pitched, "His greatest wish is to wipe out all the powerful enemies around the Tang Dynasty in his lifetime, and serve the You descendants have left behind a peaceful and prosperous age. Now Turks are gone, the northern grasslands are in chaos, Tuyuhun has also been pacified, and only Goguryeo in the southeast has not been conquered. Although Tubo has become stronger and stronger in the past two years, in the heart of His Majesty Taizong, Goguryeo is the one I want to conquer the most. Goguryeo took advantage of the civil strife in the Central Plains and occupied Liaodong. , Your Majesty sighed for it..."

As expected of the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, Fang Xuanling was very clear about Li Shimin's thoughts. Under his explanation, Li Yin also understood the reason why Fang Xuanling was eager to build roads.It turned out that during this period of time, the Tang Dynasty had no strong enemies outside, and the country was very stable. Li Shimin also moved his mind to conquer Goguryeo. Although Fang Xuanling and Li Jing were all against it, they could not change Li Shimin's decision.

Just when Fang Xuanling felt helpless, Li Min suddenly invented cement, which gave Fang Xuanling an idea. He thought that if he wanted to build roads across the country, it would definitely cost a lot of money. Large-scale campaigns can not only greatly improve the traffic conditions of the Tang Dynasty, but also delay the time for the conquest of Goguryeo, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone.After all, road construction can't be completed in one or two years, plus the time to accumulate strength after road construction, seven or eight years will have passed, and Li Shimin may have changed his mind by then.It was precisely because of this intention that he was so actively in favor of road construction.

Politics is indeed the most complicated thing in the world, and there is no simple person in politics!After listening to Fang Xuanling's explanation, Li Yin couldn't help but sighed in his heart. It was a simple matter, but once it was in the hands of Fang Xuanling and others, it became extremely complicated. Who would have thought that building a road would involve As for the conquest of Goguryeo? . ..